Exoskeletons have been used in rehabilitation to help paralyzed people walk on their own feet, as well as for military applications to allow soldiers to trek for long distances while carrying heavy loads. Ekso Bionics thinks a big market is for workers in all sorts of industries to be able to use heavy handheld equipment without literally breaking their backs. The Ekso Works device makes a tool that weighs as much as a cinder block simply float in front of you, so all you need to do is point it where you want to make a cut or drill a hole. We had a chance to try out this nifty gadget and see whether back surgeons may soon have a dearth of patients.
The basic thing to understand about the device is that while it’s unpowered, it’s not meant for the user to walk long distances. Instead it’s designed to make the tool you’re working with effectively weightless. While your physics teacher will tell you it takes no work to keep a heavy-duty DeWalt saw above your head, your muscles will claim otherwise. The trick is to transfer the weight of the tool to the ground without your muscles, bones, and joints doing the heavy lifting. We were quite impressed by the technology. It’s still in the development stage and did feel like it needs some tweaking, but it’s obvious that it’s about time that no one should be operating tools that weigh dozens of pounds for hours at a time.
Link: Ekso Bionics…